Who is a member?
Our members are the local governments of Massachusetts and their elected and appointed leadership.
Dear Senator,
On behalf of the cities and towns of the Commonwealth, the Massachusetts Municipal Association strongly supports Amendment #34 to S. 2010, the fiscal 2014 supplemental budget that will be before the Senate for consideration today. This amendment, filed by Senator Sonia Chang-Diaz, would address a major education funding shortfall that is impacting dozens and dozens of cities, towns and school districts in every corner of the Commonwealth.
Reimbursements for School Aid Deductions for Charter School Tuition
Amendment #34 is critically necessary in order to fully fund the state’s statutory obligation to reimburse cities, towns and regional school districts for a portion of school aid lost as tuition payments to charter schools. The underfunding amount is estimated at $28 million in the current fiscal year.
The statute governing charter school finance provides that the full amount of tuition paid to charter schools, as calculated by the state, be deducted from the Chapter 70 school aid amount allocated to local public schools for each year. The law also provides that cities and towns be temporarily reimbursed for a portion of lost school aid to allow districts time to adjust to lower aid levels and to manage any possible cuts to local school programs resulting from the Chapter 70 reduction.
The tuition and reimbursement provisions were key parts of the agreement on charter school finance enacted in the 1997 charter school law (Chapter 46) and more recently in Chapter 12 of the Acts of 2010, An Act relative to the Achievement Gap. While the Chapter 70 reductions have been implemented in full, the reimbursements have not followed, especially this year. This is hurting education programs in local public schools and causing fiscal problems in cities and towns generally.
These Chapter 70-based tuition payments to charter schools are not subject to appropriation by the state or by any city or town. These payments are completely off budget and are automatically paid in full annually through Cherry Sheet assessments on communities and school districts. The reimbursements due to cities and towns are subject to state appropriation annually as part of the state budget process and have not been fully paid.
We appreciate the steps that you and your colleagues took last year to address the fiscal 2013 shortfall, and the good news is that the statutory reimbursement formula was nearly fully funded for fiscal 2013 at $66 million. However, the account is substantially underfunded this year, and this is causing significant hardship in school districts and communities across the state. For fiscal 2014, the state needs an appropriation of an estimated $103 million to cover the reimbursement amount provided for by law. The account is funded at just $75 million, which is $28 million short of full funding.
The funding shortfall means that cities and towns are receiving a fraction of the reimbursements due according to state law, and this is impacting a large number of communities. Of the 20 cities and towns with the largest shortfalls, ranging from $250,000 to $10.3 million, 14 of them have been deemed by the state to have underperforming schools. These include some the state’s poorest and most financially distressed cities and towns. Thus, the underfunding of the charter school reimbursement formula is harming the most vulnerable and challenged school districts and communities.
Senator Chang-Diaz’s amendment would simply provide the funds necessary for the Commonwealth to fully fund the charter school reimbursement schedule that is set in state law. We strongly and respectfully ask you to support Amendment #34 to ensure that the fiscal 2014 state budget meets the statutory commitment to provide a measure of relief from the impact of school aid assessments attributable to charter schools.
With state revenues exceeding the original tax estimate by more than $400 million, we ask you to support Amendment #34. This amendment would reimburse cities and towns consistent with state law, and is needed to prevent cuts to existing school programs and local services. Please do not hesitate to have your office contact me or MMA Legislative Director John Robertson at (617) 426-7272 at any time if you have any questions or need additional information.
Thank you very much.
Sincerely,
Geoffrey C. Beckwith
Executive Director, MMA